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Science Market Update

In Science Market Update articles alone, we have seen the power of stem cells applied to restoring eye function and to repairing the brain at UW Madison. Not to be outdone, the University of Southern California is adding to the list of stem cell applications with its new study into repairing skeletal structures, in particular the ribs.

This June, we saw that Ann Arbor researchers were adjusting the process of cell autophagy in order to fight cancerous tumors. (You can read our article on the subject here.) This September, life scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles have found that tapping into autophagy may prevent the inevitable: that is, the aging of the human body.

Science researchers at the Washington State University, Pullman have recently been able to link patients' ancestors' exposure to the pesticide methoxychlor with adult onset kidney disease, ovarian disease and obesity in the patient him or herself.

If you have ever had a severe headache, you may have noticed how pain takes a toll on your emotional state, especially if you have ever experienced a migraine. Taking pain medication can help with how a headache feels physically, but what effects does pain relief have on people emotionally? Believe it or not, a number of studies have been conducted on how pain medication like ibuprofen can ameliorate emotional pain. Research has proven that ibuprofen can indeed relieve emotional stress, but scientists at the University of Texas, Austin have recently discovered that it is much more effective on women than on men. Men who take the drug say that they experience harsher feelings of rejection, while women report feeling better.

Once a stigmatized disease, AIDS is now a primary focus for many researchers seeking to address deadly health problems and potentially save the lives of millions of men, women and children. AIDS killed 1.5 million people worldwide last year, a staggering number that has drawn the attention of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Addressing this disease is a priority for the Gates Foundation, as is evidenced by all the work they have done to select and fund promising research. Fortunately, scientists all over the world are searching for innovative solutions to curing this disease. The Gates Foundation has found one likely contender for a vaccine that may also work as a cure in the work of a science researcher at Oregon Health and Science University.

Roughly 2 percent of Americans have some form of paralysis resulting from spinal cord injury, according to the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. It is impossible to restore function and movement lost in this sort of paralysis…or at least, it has been up until now. A bioresearch team at the University of California, Irvine has discovered the perfect concoction to cure such paralysis using, of all things, a protein transplant from salmon.

It’s not an uncommon dream for cancer researchers and patients afflicted with cancer to find a way to make cancer cells self-destruct: Remarkably, cancer researchers at the University of Texas, Austin may have found a way to do just that. By ferrying sodium and chloride ions into the cancer cells, the cells are triggered to go through apoptosis, or a programmed cell death.

What would you do if you were unable to find a veterinarian for your beloved dog or cat if they became sick? People who serve as caretakers for animals love their pets. The state of Arizona, however, has a shortage of trained veterinarians due to the fact that there is minimal animal medicine programs in the state. One university seeks to address this problem with a new program in veterinary medicine at the University of Arizona.

Malaria is a devastating global health problem in many parts of the world, having caused nearly 215 million infections internationally and 655,000 deaths per year. Most people know malaria is transmitted by the bite of an infective mosquito: the female Anopheles mosquito in particular. There are other less common methods of transmission as well, including blood transfusion, organ transplantation, needle sharing and when a mother gives birth to a child.